Wingu Academy

Purpose in Progress — The Power of Intentional Education

In an age when education platforms proliferate, and content is everywhere, the difference lies in why and how we teach. At Wingu Academy, we believe education with purpose transforms lives. Intentional education doesn’t just move students through content—it shapes their thinking, builds agency, and grows capability. Recent empirical research supports the power of live online teaching. A study with pre-service mathematics teachers in China over 51 class hours found that students taught via live classes improved significantly from pre-test to post-test in areas including problem solving and mathematical methodology. This suggests that live, interactive sessions aren’t simply convenient—they’re academically effective. Purposeful education must combine human interaction, accountability, and flexibility. Wingu’s model does just that. Live classes with qualified human teachers help ensure that each learner experiences supportive feedback, immediate clarification of doubts, and dynamic interaction—something research shows increases engagement and retention. For example, a study on “Assessing the Effectiveness of Using Live Interactions and Feedback to Increase Engagement in Online Learning” found that live components and feedback mechanisms strongly correlate with higher learner performance and persistence. But not everyone can always attend live classes. That’s why Wingu complements live instruction with class recordings. Recordings allow learners to revisit complex topics, review explanations, and catch up when schedules clash. Research during the COVID-19 shift showed that many students appreciated the flexibility that recordings brought—being able to pause, rewind, and absorb at their own pace. Accountability matters as well. Real tests and exams—designed and marked by qualified educators—create solid milestones. They measure not just rote memorisation, but comprehension and application. In South Africa, for example, a study of Grade 9 mathematics found that the quality of school-based assessment strongly predicted achievement. When assessments are well designed, clear, and consistent, they contribute significantly to learning outcomes. Qualified teachers add another crucial dimension. Beyond delivering content, they interpret learner signals—facial expression, tone, confusion—and adjust accordingly. They model academic rigour, ethical behaviour, and curiosity. Research on the “Human Element in Teaching” emphasises that emotional cues, teacher empathy, and relational trust improve student motivation, self-efficacy, and social skills. Putting intent into every aspect of education—from lesson planning, teacher-learner interaction, assessment, to flexibility—culminates in progress that’s not superficial. Progress is deeper when learners understand why they learn, feel guided by a capable human, and see their growing competence. At Wingu, our commitment is to deliver education that’s intentional in every detail: live classes that spark engagement, qualified teachers who know both content and context, meaningful assessments, and recordings that support review and reflection. Purpose is our path; progress is our promise.

November 19, 2025
OneAid

How Safe Are Teething Gels?

Every baby is different but common symptoms associated with teething include, mild irritability, drooling, low-grade fever and loss of appetite. If your baby is inconsolable or has a high fever chances are this is not due to teething. Teething should not make your baby very sick but rather very unhappy.

November 19, 2025
Mia Von Scha

How To Be Angry Without Destroying Your Kids’ Self-Confidence

All too often I hear parents trying to repress their anger around their kids. Now this is not only unhealthy for you (repressed emotions actually create illness within the body) but it is also not great for your kids to grow up believing that some emotions are simply not ok to have. All emotions are a part of our human journey, and are messages from our unconscious mind regarding things we need to pay attention to or change in our lives. Having said that, it is also worth noting that telling your child that THEY are making YOU angry, sad, irritated (or even happy) is simply too much responsibility to place on another human being, particularly a little one! No one can MAKE you anything. Think about squeezing an orange. What comes out? I’m hoping that you’re saying “orange juice”! Not guava juice or pear juice or cherry flavoured Coca-Cola! Why? Because you only get out what is already within. So if your kids are pushing your buttons and there’s anger coming out, well then that’s what is within. Take responsibility for your own emotions. Own them – they’re yours. However, this does not mean that you are not allowed to experience these emotions, and even experience them very strongly in the presence of your children. So how do we express strong negative emotions without damaging our kids and making them feel responsible for us and our emotional state? How do we teach them to take responsibility for THEIR own emotions and not blame you or their siblings or teachers or life for how it is that THEY are feeling? It all starts with the little one-letter word “I”. “I am feeling soooo angry right now”, “I am feeling more and more and more irritated, so irritated that I could just scream”, “I am feeling ridiculously happy, like the luckiest person in the world”. As opposed to: “You are making me very angry”, “You are irritating me”, “You make your mom sooo happy”. Can you see the difference? And these can be said with as much emotion or volume as you feel is appropriate. You can even step it up in ways that they can relate to and that gives them some warning about where you’re at… “I am about as angry as a pea right now… Now I’m as angry as a small cat… AND NOW I’M AS ANGRY AS A LARGE ELEPHANT!!!” They will get the message. They will learn when to step away. They will learn how to experience strong emotional states themselves without lashing out at others. What they won’t learn is to take responsibility for you. What they won’t learn is to blame. What they won’t learn is to beat themselves up for your inner state. This builds emotional maturity, responsibility and self-confidence. All emotions are ok, but how we choose to express them is what makes the biggest difference.

November 19, 2025
Mia Von Scha

Why do children lie?

The question of why children lie begs the greater question of why any of us lie. If you think back to the last time you lied (and I’ll bet my life you can think of a time), look at what was going on internally and this will give you a good idea of why your children do it and how to avoid it in future. Now before we get to that, let me just say that we all have all traits. We are all liars sometimes and every one of us will be pushed to lie under certain circumstances. So firstly, please never label your child as a liar. Once we apply a label to a child they are more likely (not less) to repeat this behaviour and to incorporate it into their sense of self as they grow up. ALL children lie sometimes (as do ALL adults). Ok, so it’s normal to lie sometimes, but why, and why do some lie more often? Going back to why we all do, lying is a fear-based behaviour. The child believes, for whatever reason, that if they tell the truth it will result in more pain than pleasure. And where do they get this message? From us, of course. We’re constantly giving kids unconscious messages that telling the truth will get you in trouble. “Who ate the sweets?” “I did” “Right, go to your room”. Sound familiar? What we need to get into the habit of doing is praising truth-telling and taking responsibility more than we punish “bad” behaviour. If our children own up and say that they “did it” we should be actively praising this behaviour and pointing out that while the behaviour is not ok with us, we’re really impressed that they told the truth. Children will only lie if they are afraid of our reaction to the truth. I know that many people worry that if they take this approach they will be too soft on the bad behaviour and will end up with unruly kids. One of the fundamental structures for well-behaved, compliant children is being their primary attachment (which implies complete trust, openness and closeness). If your children trust you completely and feel connected to you and loved no matter what they do they will actually be less likely to produce so called “bad” behaviours in the long run. Of course they will make mistakes along the way and present “negative” traits (like we all do) including lying, but this will not develop into any kind of delinquency if that adult-child connection is in place. And part of keeping it in place is keeping the lines of communication open and allowing your children to tell the truth and know they will be safe. I think this is a fundamental skill to work on when your children are little and to instil a sense of open communication and acceptance BEFORE they become teenagers. Once our kids hit the teen years, if we’ve shut off honest communication, we are in for a different level of trouble with our children lying to us about things that can be life threatening, or where they really could use our adult help and guidance. The next time your child lies to you think about why they would be afraid to tell the truth and then instead of punishing them for lying, rather address the rift in your relationship.

November 18, 2025
Bill Corbett

Four Classic Reasons a Child Misbehaves

I’ve been working with parents and other caregivers for over 20 years, helping them find solutions to their children’s challenging behaviour s. The adults who come to me want to know what to do about the behaviour  and providing them with easy-to-apply solutions is my ultimate goal.  To get there, I ask the caregivers a series of questions about the behaviour  and all contributing factors that will help lead me to the underlying problem that is causing the child’s challenging behaviour. According to leading psychologists, a child’s behaviour  falls into one of these four primary categories. See if you can connect past or reoccurring incidents of challenging behaviour  from your child, to either of these. Communications When a child is tired, grouchy, and whiny, he or she is not likely to walk up to the parent and say, “Gee dad, I’m feeling a little tired right now.  Do you mind if I lie down and take a nap?” They are however, very likely to not cooperative, throw a fit, or refuse to get into the car seat. In this case, their behaviour  is communication about the fact that they have had enough stimulation and need sleep. Expression of Needs On occasion I would take my 3 year old granddaughter to the mall with me and like her mother many years before; I would sometimes end up chasing her through the crowd. In a quick moment if I let go of her hand, with a mischievous smile she would run from me yelling, “Catch me grandpa!”  Her giggling told me that she wanted to play with me and her way of expressing that need was to run away and get me to chase after her.  This required me to firm up the boundaries on the next trip and to find more appropriate ways to satisfy her need to play. Experimentation A woman contacted me for help with her five year old.  The little girl began walking around on her hands and knees, barking like a dog.  She was probably experimenting with the act of pretending to be a dog, to see what it felt like, and to see what the reaction of her adult caregivers would be.  The woman initially became very annoyed with the constant barking.  Her scolding created a new motivation in her daughter to do it more because it became unexpectedly fun for the little girl to drive mommy crazy! Unconscious Drives Famed psychodynamic psychologist Sigmund Freud believed that processes are constantly working in the unreachable subconscious region of the mind.  These processes are thoughts that can trigger emotions and behaviour s in an adult or a child.  If a child is living in a situation where adult chaos is present, the chaos can become worry, fear, or anxiety for a child which can then generate challenging behaviour s for the caregivers.  The adult chaos may be in the form of parents fighting, a single mother feeling and acting stressed, parents and grandparents in conflict, or even a teacher who has not been taking care of herself.  Children look to their caregivers for a sense that things are OK and when they don’t appear OK, the child is likely to reflect that unstable sense through their own behaviour .

November 18, 2025
DIBBER SA

Dibber Shares Practical Strategies to Address Year-End Fatigue for Parents and Preschoolers

As year-end fast approaches, Dibber International Preschools, a leading preschool provider, offers clear and practical strategies to help parents and their children manage the challenges of burnout. Parenting is a rewarding yet demanding role, and both parents and preschoolers can feel the strain of modern life’s demands. Dibber is committed to supporting families with actionable advice to promote balance and well-being. “Parenting is a fulfilling journey, but it can be challenging at times,” says Ursula Assis, Dibber Country Director. “At Dibber, we view ourselves as an extended family, partnering with parents to create a supportive environment where both children and caregivers can flourish.” Understanding Parental Burnout  Parental burnout is an overwhelming state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion and can arise from financial stress, work-life balance challenges, lack of support, or unrealistic expectations. It’s a common issue, with 65% of working parents reporting burnout, according to recent surveys. Dibber encourages families to adopt practical strategies to regain energy and focus. Parental Burnout Strategies Dibber provides the following tips to help parents recharge: Supporting Preschoolers Through Burnout. Young children can also feel overwhelmed by busy schedules or high expectations. Dibber’s approach to preventing preschool burnout includes: “At Dibber, we strive to support families every step of the way,” adds Assis. “Our educators create a nurturing environment where children feel secure and parents feel supported. We’re more than a preschool—we’re a community that grows together.” Dibber invites parents to explore these strategies and connect with their local preschool community for support. For more information about Dibber’s programmes and family resources, visit https://www.dibber.co.za or follow Dibber on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.

November 17, 2025
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